Incurable
by maybeweare
Summary: When she and Emma start talking about having a baby, Regina has to confess the drastic step she took years ago that left her infertile. No one has ever reversed the damage this potion can do. Except Snow White. More about Snow and Regina's relationship than Swan Queen. Unrepentantly sappy.


"So, the big question." Emma sat on the couch with Regina between her legs, lying back against her. "Which one of us?"

Emma could feel Regina tense in her arms. "You," the brunette whispered.

They were silent for a moment, Emma gently stroking Regina's arms in an effort to help her relax. "I'd love to," the blonde said, shifting to try to get a view of Regina's face. "I just always got this vibe from you that you really wanted to have a baby yourself."

"I was jealous of you and Henry," Regina replied. She sat up, pulling away from the blonde. "I wanted that connection. But I know that this child will be _ours_, together, no matter how we get it."

Emma nodded, shifting her position to sit beside Regina with a little space between them. "Of course." Emma reached for her hand, and Regina let her hold it. "Maybe we should take some time to think about it. And I'll do it, if that's what we decide. I can do it."

Regina didn't look at her. "I can't," she said bitterly, and Emma saw hints of tears in her eyes. "Don't you understand that? It's not possible, Emma."

Emma knew better than to press, but she couldn't help it. She wasn't about to get up and walk away, leave Regina alone, not when she was like this. Not when she looked so unhappy that she was the old Regina again, the broken one. "There are treatments."

"Not for this." Regina forced herself to turn and meet Emma's concerned gaze. "You were so young when you had Henry. Weren't you scared?"

The blonde offered a gentle smile. "Terrified. But I'm so glad it happened."

"I was eighteen when I married," Regina began, slipping closer to fill the space between them. Without contact she didn't know if she'd be able to tell the story. "Leopold loved Snow so much. He wanted more of that love. He wanted me to have children, and I was so afraid."

Emma put an arm around Regina's waist protectively. It was rare that Regina was willing to talk about her past, especially the part involving her marriage, and Emma knew she needed all the support she could get at moments like this.

* * *

_"Can you help me or not?" The young queen stood with her hands on her hips, the usual mix of wariness and impatience in her eyes._

_Rumplestiltskin pulled a vial of black liquid from his bag, and Regina reached for it. "Not so fast, dearie," he said, stepping back out of her reach. "You know that…"_

_"All magic comes with a price," Regina interrupted. "I'm willing to pay it. What do you want?"_

_"It's not me I'm worried about." Rumplestiltskin made one of his usual over-the-top gestures towards the vial, and Regina rolled her eyes. "This is rare magic, powerful magic. There have been few documented cases of its use."_

_"So?"_

_"So there are no known cures. I've been working with a woman who was given this potion, this curse, without her knowledge. Her husband has paid me handsomely, and I've tried everything I can think of, but nothing works." He held the bottle up to the light and studied it. "A sip of this, dearie, and you needn't fear carrying the King's child. But if the day comes when you change your mind, don't go blaming me." He held out the vial._

_If magic could never bring Daniel back, if there was no true love for her in this world, Regina couldn't imagine ever wanting a family. She took the vial from Rumplestiltskin and uncorked it, trying to ignore his eerie laugh. Without hesitation, she lifted it to her lips, nearly choking on the bitter liquid but forcing it down._

* * *

Emma sat across the counter from her mother, the apartment silent besides Snow humming as she finished washing the last of the dishes. "Mom," Emma said tentatively. "Regina and I are going to have a baby."

Snow's face lit up, the whole reason Emma had shared the news in the first place. Snow had missed Emma's childhood, and Emma had missed so much of Henry's. With this child, they could both have a second chance.

"Is she pregnant already, then?" Snow asked, leaving the dishes in the sink and coming to sit by Emma.

"Slow down. Nobody's pregnant yet. And it'll be me, not Regina."

Snow looked surprised. "I guess I just always thought…"

"Me, too." Emma sighed. "It would make her so happy if she could. But she told me this story about how she didn't want to have children with your father, so she took some potion that made her infertile."

Snow nodded slowly. "A potion?"

"Yeah." Emma shrugged. "One with no cure."

Snow was silent for a moment, and then she glanced at the clock. "I completely forgot I had to go by the store." She glanced at her daughter, waiting a beat before hugging her tightly. "Thank you so much for telling me about all this, Emma. I'm so excited for you."

They headed out, parting ways on the street. Snow went to the corner and turned like she was going to the store, waiting beside the building until Emma was out of sight. She turned and hurried in the opposite direction, towards the woods.

* * *

Regina opened the door, startled to see Snow standing there. "Emma's out," she said. "Henry, too."

"I actually came to see you."

Regina stepped back to let Snow in. After everything they'd been through in the past few years, and with Regina and Emma together, the old animosity was gone, but the women mostly steered clear of each other. Regina honestly couldn't remember the last time she'd been alone with Snow. She led her into the living room, pausing at the door somewhat awkwardly. "Can I get you anything?"

Snow shook her head. "I just want to talk." She brushed past Regina and took a seat, the older woman still hovering.

"Did something happen?"

"Everything's fine, Regina." Snow smiled sweetly, and Regina tensed her jaw, sitting down herself. "I want to tell you a story about something that happened to me a long time ago."

"Whatever it is, I'm sure you're going to blame me." Regina crossed her legs, looking at Snow coldly. She'd tried, for Emma's sake, for Henry's, to be cordial, but her patience today had been thin long before Snow arrived.

"It was the cruelest thing anyone ever did to me. It wasn't you, Regina." When the older woman didn't react, she continued. "King George didn't want Charming and I to be together. His men captured me and brought me to the castle. He said he just wanted to talk to me."

Regina gripped the arms of the chair. As much as she hated to sympathize with Snow, she knew all too well the horrible things parents could do to stop love. "He hurt you?" she asked almost gently.

"Nothing violent," Snow said quickly. "He gave me a glass of wine while we talked, and I drank it."

Regina couldn't help smirking at that. "You were always naïve, that's for sure."

Snow nodded. "I was. I drank it, and then he told me there was a potion mixed in, and that it would render me unable to have children."

Regina was silent for a moment, exhaling deeply to steady herself. "I don't understand."

Snow leaned forward in her chair, smiling. "There's a cure, Regina."

"That's impossible."

"I drank water from Lake Nostos," Snow continued, reaching down to open her bag and pulling out a mostly empty water bottle. "That's how I was able to have Emma."

Regina reached for the bottle, and Snow handed it over. "The well," she said softly, looking up to meet Snow's eyes again.

Snow nodded. "I don't know if it will work, but I had to try. Think of it as an apology for the way my father treated you."

Regina unscrewed the top but didn't move to drink it yet. She couldn't help thinking about how it might not work, how the well water was strong but not as strong as the lake. She glanced over at Snow, seeing the hope on the younger woman's face, and drank.

Snow stood up and approached Regina's chair. "Give me your hand."

"Why?" Regina kept her hands around the bottle.

Snow unfurled her own palm to show a necklace, a long chain with a pendant. "So we can see if it worked. It tells you the gender of your firstborn child." She dangled it over her open palm, and Regina watched the pendant swing back and forth, something more than gravity and momentum moving it. "When I tried it before I drank the water, it didn't move. But now, it indicates a girl. Emma."

Regina took one hand from the bottle but left it in a fist on her lap. "What if it didn't work?" she asked softly.

Snow could see her tears but didn't dare mention them. "Then I'm so sorry for getting your hopes up. I didn't tell Emma for that same reason."

Regina unclenched her fist slowly, holding her trembling hand out. Snow held out the necklace, both women holding their breath. It hovered over Regina's palm unmoving, and she couldn't hold back a sob. "Please go," she whispered.

"Regina. Look." Regina opened her eyes again, gasping when she saw the pendant swinging, getting faster. "It just needed a second to warm up."

Regina sobbed again, happily this time. "What does it say?"

Both women looked from the pendant to each other, and Regina saw that Snow, too, had tears in her eyes. "A girl."

* * *

Snow stood up immediately when Emma and Henry came into the waiting room. "How is she?" She hurried forward to embrace her daughter.

"Beautiful," Emma said, not knowing which she Snow meant and not caring. "Go see for yourself. She asked for you."

Snow kissed Emma on the cheek, holding her a moment longer before heading around the corner to Regina's room. She hesitated in the doorway, just watching Regina look at the baby, happier than she'd ever seen her. Regina lifted her head up after a moment. "Come in."

Snow went to the side of the bed to see the baby's face, tears prickling in her eyes. "She's perfect," she breathed.

"Isn't she?" Emma was back, coming to stand by Snow's side, beaming.

"Want to hold her, Grandma?" Regina asked, and Snow immediately moved forward to take her, cradling her the way she'd never been able to do with her daughter or grandson. "Her name's Bianca. After you."

"Regina's idea," Emma added, sitting down at the edge of the bed and taking Regina's hand.

"Hello, Bianca," Snow cooed. She managed to tear her gaze from the baby, smiling gratefully at Regina. "Thank you."

"It couldn't have happened without you," Regina replied.

"So I guess the feud's over?" Emma asked as Snow bent to pass the baby back to Regina.

Regina leaned down to kiss Bianca's forehead lightly. "She needs a strong family," she said. "A united one." Regina smiled at Emma and then at Snow. "I guess I need that, too."


End file.
